Hunting Day

The sound of wolves howled through the jungle, loud, bloodthirsty, and utterly chilling.

The five men, who had been preparing to find a place to build a fire and warm themselves, all looked toward the hillside. Beneath the round, rolling moonlight, a figure was throwing back its head and roaring at the sky.

Their already-taut nerves tightened once more. What came into view, however, was a huge, thoroughly wild wolf.

Moonlight spilled over the wolf, casting its fur in a silvery purple glow. Its deep-green eyes radiated a fierce, razor-sharp aggression.

"Boss, it's a giant wolf. How can a wolf get this big?"

"Quiet. It doesn't seem interested in attacking us. Start the fire, quickly! As long as we have a fire, that wolf won't dare come over!"

The leading martial artist looked calm enough, but the bobbing of his throat and the way his toes pointed in the opposite direction betrayed the cowardice in his heart.

With a soft hiss, a fire slowly caught. Only then did the five men's fear ease somewhat.

Yet when they looked toward the hillside, the wolf was still standing beneath the moonlight, as though it were constantly drawing in the essence of the moon. It had not moved an inch.

Duan Xuan, who had been observing the martial artists' movements from the hillside to the side, was also stunned by the enormous wild wolf.

He had hunted game ever since he was a child, and he could guarantee that he had never seen prey as massive as this wild wolf.

Its lithe, powerful body, claws as large as a human's head, razor-sharp fangs, and those dark-green eyes tinged with blood-red all told Duan Xuan one thing.

This wild wolf was definitely no ordinary beast.

Could my first howl have attracted it? When Duan Jian had taken Duan Xuan hunting as a child, he had often taught him about hunting.

One rule was that when chasing prey, one should never strike rashly without absolute certainty.

One had to keep frightening the prey, steadily shrinking its room to survive, making it overly terrified and exhausting its strength. Only when it was utterly spent was it time to make a move.

Duan Xuan had followed this principle throughout the journey.

He had used rocks and other objects to create sounds, keeping the men on tenterhooks.

When they became distracted and relaxed again, he would imitate a wolf's howl once or twice, forcing them to slow down.

But he had never expected to attract an unwelcome guest.

There was nothing he could do. He had intended to kill those martial artists under cover of night, but Duan Xuan could only give up for the time being.

He was uncertain of the wild wolf's strength, or what it would do after catching the scent of blood.

Duan Xuan did not act rashly. The three sides remained locked in a stalemate until the next morning, when the wolf chased after the rising sun and vanished from everyone's sight with great strides.

Only then did everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"Boss, you've seen a lot. What exactly was that wolf? Do you know?"

Duan Xuan pricked up his ears in the distance and listened in secret.

"Back in the day, an old senior at the academy did mention something about it. He said these deep mountains were home to all sorts of ancient spirits and strange creatures. That wolf was enormous and even knew how to absorb the essence of Heaven and Earth. It should be the legendary Demon Beast!"

"Demon Beast?" The words lingered in everyone's hearts. Of course they had heard of them, but no one had ever seen one. It was simply too fantastical.

"Don't think I'm spouting nonsense. Demon Beasts are worth a fortune and are highly nourishing.

"They can rapidly replenish a martial artist's qi and blood, temper their muscles and bones, and hone their physique and flesh.

"Our family head once obtained half a Demon Beast corpse and gave it to the eldest, second, and third young masters to share.

"All three broke through to Ming Force in a single night. Their skin became as hard as blades and spears, utterly impervious to harm.

"Even their cultivation speed surpassed what it had been before!"

The men were utterly bewildered by what they heard. The more they listened, the more bizarre it sounded. But they could hardly go ask the old master for confirmation, so they could only assume their boss was bragging.

Duan Xuan, meanwhile, was horrified.

He neither questioned it nor rashly believed it. But in this world of martial arts, nothing was impossible.

People often divided the martial arts path into three great thresholds and three great realms. But what lay above Hua Force?

Could Hua Force truly be the limit of a martial artist?

Clearly, that was impossible!

Just as he was about to act, the sound of horses came from the distance.

"Old Zhang, you're finally here. We've already..." The leader of the five men immediately cupped his hands, stepped forward, and bowed when he saw the riders.

But the old man sitting atop a horse merely snorted coldly. "You useless fools. You've been followed and didn't even realize it. Boy, come out!"

The old man and the two youths behind him simultaneously turned toward Duan Xuan's position. Duan Xuan blew the Whistling Arrow without the slightest hesitation.

However, the Whistling Arrow was not aimed at the three people on horseback. It was aimed at the leader of the five hired fighters.

In the blink of an eye, the Ming Force martial artist was pierced through the forehead.

The old man on horseback had never once intended to shield him. Instead, he stared coldly at the hole in the man's forehead and the sleeve arrow, then snarled, "This is the brat who killed our hidden sentry outside the Mountain-Breaking Stance Martial Academy. Capture him!"

As soon as the words fell, the four Ming Force martial artists did not dare delay. They did not even dare spare their own leader's corpse another lingering glance, because they knew Old Zhang's strength even better.

He was a veteran Dark Force martial artist who had one foot over the threshold of the Transformation Realm. He was already in his forties or fifties. Although he had not broken through Dark Force, his qi and blood showed no signs of decline.

Back when he had been in the fourth branch's courtyard, he had been utterly ruthless. Whenever an Attendant under him showed even the slightest insubordination, they would face extremely severe punishment.

"Old Zhang, that boy's pretty clever. He actually knew to run along the hillside. Our horses can't get up there."

"Hmph! Young Master Huang, are you underestimating this old man's strength? Horses can't climb a slope like that, and even people would struggle to crawl up it. Just follow me!"

"Third Brother, isn't this area ahead the hunting ground selected for this year's Martial Arts Examination? Wouldn't barging in without applying first..."

Zhang Zhuanghe mocked them mercilessly again. "If the two young masters of the Wang family don't have the courage to pursue my family's young lady, then please turn back.

"But let me remind you: the Fourth Branch's young lady is on this mountain. Capture her alive, and you will be qualified to form a marriage alliance with the Wang family and escape your awkward status as collateral descendants of the Huang family.

"Life is short, and opportunities are rare. Consider your options carefully!

"Hyah!"

Zhang Zhuanghe whipped his horse into a gallop. The two young masters of the Huang Family exchanged a glance, tightened their legs against their horses' bellies, and followed.

Martial Arts Examination grounds.

The two-day strength competition had come to an end. Next came the three-day hunting contest.

"Do you two junior brothers have any experience with hunting?" Chen Jingyun asked.

Liu Mingze lowered his head to glance at his refined senior sister and laughed loudly. "Those with ability can do anything. Every path is passable."

Lin Hu said boredly, "I crushed those third-rate pieces of garbage from the Scale Python Martial Academy in the qi-and-blood competition. This hunt will be just as easy. If only my bumpkin senior brother Duan were here—I would show him what hunting really is!"

"Check your weapons. Don't let anyone tamper with them and regret it after the competition begins." Chen Jingyun did not respond to him. Instead, she warned the remaining Dark Force disciples present.

In the first event, the weight-lifting test had five levels. Only martial artists who reached the top three grades—A, B, or C—had a good chance of advancing.

Thus, after two days, most of the Ming Force martial artists had been eliminated, and only five from the Broken Mountain Martial Arts Hall remained.

"Senior Sister, no problem here. We can set out!"

"Good. Into the mountains. Try not to split up along the way. In this battle, the danger isn't only the beasts. You must watch out for people as well!"

"Everyone..." Before the Chen sisters could finish, Lin Hu and Liu Mingze unexpectedly ran off in different directions at the same time.

"Hey, what are you two doing? Hey..."